Latest news with #Women'sSeries
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Luke Humphries sent Beau Greaves 'big time' message after major scare
Beau Greaves defends her Women's World Matchplay crown on Sunday following a ringing endorsement from world No. 1 Luke Humphries, who reckons she will grace the Premier League one day It would take a brave punter to bet against Beau Greaves at the Women's World Matchplay. While the likes of Fallon Sherrock and Lisa Ashton will have something to say, Beau 'n' Arrow is the overwhelming favourite to make it three Matchplay crowns in a row on Sunday. Greaves hasn't just been dominating fellow female players this year, she has been taking it to the men as well. After the disappointment of failing to land a PDC Tour card via Q-School in January, the Doncaster thrower has bounced back in devastating fashion. She tops the Women's Series by a whopping margin, leads the Development Tour and is fifth in the Challenge Tour, as well as making a smattering of appearances on the ProTour. Greaves also made her mark at the UK Open, pushing world No. 1 Luke Humphries all the way on the main stage at Butlin's Minehead. At 7-5 up, she looked capable of dumping out the 2024 world champion, who fought back to win 10-7. The standing ovation she received from the crowd and the respect she was afforded by Humphries were richly deserved for a player who is continually raising the bar in the women's game. Cool Hand was so impressed that he predicted it won't be long before she joins him and Luke Littler in the Premier League. "She belongs in big-time darts. She is obviously a massive advocate of the ladies' game," said Humphries. "The ladies' game has grown massively and it is because of her, but she belongs in this environment. She really did test me there and if we were in a Premier League game, she would have beat me. She just needs to give herself time. "Maybe in five years, I think she'll be in the Premier League and I think she is probably a top-64 player in the world right now, but I don't want to put pressure on her. "Let her keep doing what she's doing and the next few years she will find she has got the level that can match me, Luke [Littler] and Michael [van Gerwen], so she has a massive future ahead of her. "She is still very young but if you can test me - and I didn't play too bad there - it shows she has got the big-time darts and over the next few years I am sure I will be sharing the stage with her a lot." Humphries' plea for patience may fall on deaf ears amid the clamour for her to return to the PDC World Championship for the first time since the 2022/23 tournament, when she competed well before being eventually beaten by William O'Connor in the first round. Barred from competing in both the WDF Women's World Championship and the PDC Worlds, Greaves has shunned Alexandra Palace for the Lakeside in the last two years. Her 2025 plans are unclear, but the smart money is on her joining the expanded 128-player field at Ally Pally. Having previously expressed a reluctance to play against the men on a regular basis, Greaves is now feeling much more at ease. "I've been doing well on the Challenge Tour and the Development Tour, that's really brought my game on,' she said as she signed with Target Darts, who are also Littler's equipment suppliers. "Being able to play on the ProTour has been really good for me too. I've had a couple of wins on there. "I just want to keep progressing. I need to be a bit more consistent and just push myself more. Playing the better players does make me better." On the big decision facing her, she insists it will be her choice, despite potential outside influences. She said: 'Obviously, I have that choice to make between Lakeside and Ally Pally. I'm not sure yet. I think I'll know halfway through the year. 'I have a great support system with my family and my manager. Ultimately, I listen to what I want to do, what I want to play in. It's a massive opportunity, more on the Ally Pally side, but it's about what I'm comfortable with.' Top seed Greaves will face Finnish debutant Kirsi Viinikainen in the quarter-finals of the Women's Matchplay on Sunday afternoon.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Luke Humphries showed true colours after inspiring World Matchplay star to return to darts
Women's World Matchplay darts contender Gemma Hayter opens up about rediscovering her passion for the sport thanks to a little help from men's world No. 1 Luke Humphries Gemma Hayter will grace the famous Winter Gardens stage after being inspired to get back into darts by old friend Luke Humphries. The 31-year-old will make her Women's World Matchplay debut on Sunday, just 18 months after ending her eight-year break from the game. Hayter was an exciting prospect as a teenager and was even touted as a future world champion at one stage. She played youth darts with Humphries and was called up to represent England almost a decade ago, teaming up with the likes of Fallon Sherrock and Lisa Ashton. However, around the same time, she quit the game, citing a lack of opportunities for female players. She said: 'I was 12 or 13 when my nan took me along to the Hampshire youth set-up and I played youth darts. Then, when I was 14, I got called up to the senior team and played senior darts for a few years. "In 2016, I qualified to play for England. But that was the year I gave up for eight years. I just felt there was no opportunity for the women back then. I didn't do the BDO tour, as it was back then, so the highest I could go was to play for England. 'I also met my partner and we got quite serious. We wanted to buy a house and I was spending £200 a weekend to play one game for Hampshire. I felt there should have been more competitions for the ladies.' Hayter still played the odd game during her sabbatical but was inspired to get back into the sport properly during the 2023/24 World Championship. She said: 'It was a bit of Luke Littler fever when he played his first Worlds. And I played youth darts with Luke Humphries and that was the year he won it. 'It was someone I'd known since I was 16. If that doesn't inspire you, nothing will. Darts was everywhere and I still had a board at home. I was throwing and said to my other half, 'These are going really well.' 'She said, 'If you want to get back into it…' I looked at when the Women's Series started and she said, 'Right, I'll book the weekend off and will drive you.'' Hayter hit the ground running at her first Women's Series tournament in 2024. After beating Sherrock, she was suddenly inundated with offers from potential managers. That prompted her to turn to Humphries for advice, and he showed his class in response. 'When I came back to darts, I had a few good results. At my second ever Women's Series event, I beat Fallon 5-1 with like a 97 average,' she added. 'I then had a few contract offers from managers, so I messaged Luke. I said, 'I know you're really, really busy, but you know about this stuff more than me,' and he navigated it with me.' Hayter eventually signed with MODUS management and the Red Dragon manufacturer, who are also Humphries' backers. 'He's a really nice, genuine and laid-back guy,' said Hayter, who will face Sherrock in the quarter-finals of the Women's Matchplay. 'I never thought he'd be doing what he's doing now. He was always a decent player but he didn't play any senior darts at that point [when we played together]. His rise has been brilliant to watch.' The Women's Series and tournaments like the Women's Matchplay have been welcome additions to the calendar, giving Hayter an incentive to get back into the sport. However, she isn't entirely satisfied with how the female game is promoted and supported. 'A lot of the manufacturers and people who sponsor darts players, they're not really backing the women,' she said. 'And I've been quite critical of the PDC. I don't feel like they push the women enough. 'They didn't put any of the Women's Series finals on YouTube until I kicked up a bit of stink about it online. I put up a post on Twitter [saying], 'Why are we not getting seen?' All they were posting was the last six darts of a final.' With that in mind, Hayter would like to see more women's tournaments in the PDC, like a World Championship. She added: 'I think now is the time,. The trouble is, the PDC are only interested in when the women are beating the blokes, that's the only time you see them get pushed, which is a shame. 'Everyone knows Beau, Fallon and Lisa Ashton are great players. They're producing big averages against each other but no one is seeing it. They need to get people interested in the women's players more.'
The Irish Sun
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Sky Sports presenter can't keep straight face at darts star Andrew Gilding's excruciating answer to question on live TV
SKY SPORTS presenter Polly James could not keep a straight face after darts star Andrew Gilding gave a remarkable answer to a question live on TV. Gilding, 54, progressed past Dirk van Duijvenbode 11-5 to reach the World Matchplay of darts quarter-finals for just the second time in his career. 3 Andrew Gilding left a Sky Sports presenter and fans stunned with his answer to a question Credit: 3 Polly James admitted she was unable to keep a straight face at Gilding's 'stiff answer' Credit: Taylor Lanning/PDC 3 Gilding is into the quarters of the World Matchplay of darts for the second time Credit: The English player was interviewed by Sky Sports on stage at Winter Gardens in Blackpool after his match. However, his answer to the presenter's first question left both James and darts pros stunned. Goldfinger said: "Thank you. I don't know what happened. "I've spent two days in the hotel room, getting stiff and come up here today feeling absolutely awful and somehow it happened." READ MORE IN DARTS His answer left viewers stunned, with James revealing she was barely able to keep her composure in a social media post. She said: "People asking how I kept a straight face….. I bloody didn't." Stunned Glen Durrant - a three-time champion of Lakeside and winner of the Premier League in 2020 - posted: "What was that about Andrew Gilding / stiff / hotel room. I didn't quite catch it." Meanwhile, two-time Women's Series winner Gemma Hayter said: "Spent two days in the hotel room getting stiff. Most read in Darts BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK "Wonderfully worded Andrew Gilding," followed by a laughing emoji. Another fan who was taken aback said: "Andrew Gilding spent two days in the hotel doing WHAT?!" Gerwyn Price and Daryl Gurney in heated ruckus on stage at World Matchplay Darts Continuing on his low-key prep for the tournament, Gilding added: "We went out for fish and chips but that's about it really..." Asked what about Blackpool brings out the best in him, he said: "All the Goldfinger scarves. I've got a lot more support over the years." On the support he was receiving from fans, the World No28 continued: "It's amazing. I can't believe it. Thump my chest for it." Gilding concluded by saying he would not be watching the nights remaining games to discover his opponent, admitting he doesn't care who he plays next. As it turns out, his next opponent will be reigning world champion The Elsewhere, Gian van Veen is taking on James Wade and Stephen Bunting is facing Jonny Clayton. List of all-time Darts World Champions BELOW is a list of darts world champions by year. The list does not include winners from the pre-Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) era or BDO world champions. That means Raymond van Barneveld, for example, is only listed once - Barney also won four BDO titles - and none of Eric Bristow's five BDO titles are included. 1994 - Dennis Priestley 1995 - Phil Taylor 1996 - Phil Taylor (2) 1997 - Phil Taylor (3) 1998 - Phil Taylor (4) 1999 - Phil Taylor (5) 2000 - Phil Taylor (6) 2001 - Phil Taylor (7) 2002 - Phil Taylor (8) 2003 - John Part 2004 - Phil Taylor (9) 2005 - Phil Taylor (10) 2006 - Phil Taylor (11) 2007 - Raymond van Barneveld 2008 - John Part (2) 2009 - Phil Taylor (12) 2010 - Phil Taylor (13) 2011 - Adrian Lewis 2012 - Adrian Lewis (2) 2013 - Phil Taylor (14) 2014 - Michael van Gerwen 2015 - Gary Anderson 2016 - Gary Anderson (2) 2017 - Michael van Gerwen (2) 2018 - Rob Cross 2019 - Michael van Gerwen (3) 2020 - Peter Wright 2021 - Gerwyn Price 2022 - Peter Wright (2) 2023 - Michael Smith 2024 - Luke Humphries 2025 - Luke Littler Most World Titles 14 - Phil Taylor 3 - Michael van Gerwen 2 - John Part, Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Peter Wright 1 - Dennis Priestley, Raymond van Barneveld, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler
Scottish Sun
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Sky Sports presenter can't keep straight face at darts star Andrew Gilding's excruciating answer to question on live TV
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SKY SPORTS presenter Polly James could not keep a straight face after darts star Andrew Gilding gave a remarkable answer to a question live on TV. Gilding, 54, progressed past Dirk van Duijvenbode 11-5 to reach the World Matchplay of darts quarter-finals for just the second time in his career. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Andrew Gilding left a Sky Sports presenter and fans stunned with his answer to a question Credit: 3 Polly James admitted she was unable to keep a straight face at Gilding's 'stiff answer' Credit: Taylor Lanning/PDC 3 Gilding is into the quarters of the World Matchplay of darts for the second time Credit: The English player was interviewed by Sky Sports on stage at Winter Gardens in Blackpool after his match. However, his answer to the presenter's first question left both James and darts pros stunned. Goldfinger said: "Thank you. I don't know what happened. "I've spent two days in the hotel room, getting stiff and come up here today feeling absolutely awful and somehow it happened." READ MORE IN DARTS DOUBLE TROUBLE Darts ace Daryl Gurney 'held back by security' in huge row with Gerwyn Price His answer left viewers stunned, with James revealing she was barely able to keep her composure in a social media post. She said: "People asking how I kept a straight face….. I bloody didn't." Stunned Glen Durrant - a three-time champion of Lakeside and winner of the Premier League in 2020 - posted: "What was that about Andrew Gilding / stiff / hotel room. I didn't quite catch it." Meanwhile, two-time Women's Series winner Gemma Hayter said: "Spent two days in the hotel room getting stiff. BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK "Wonderfully worded Andrew Gilding," followed by a laughing emoji. Another fan who was taken aback said: "Andrew Gilding spent two days in the hotel doing WHAT?!" Gerwyn Price and Daryl Gurney in heated ruckus on stage at World Matchplay Darts Continuing on his low-key prep for the tournament, Gilding added: "We went out for fish and chips but that's about it really..." Asked what about Blackpool brings out the best in him, he said: "All the Goldfinger scarves. I've got a lot more support over the years." On the support he was receiving from fans, the World No28 continued: "It's amazing. I can't believe it. Thump my chest for it." Gilding concluded by saying he would not be watching the nights remaining games to discover his opponent, admitting he doesn't care who he plays next. As it turns out, his next opponent will be reigning world champion Luke Littler. The World No2 survived a major scare from Jermaine Wattimena to come back from 4-0 down in his second round clash. Elsewhere, Gian van Veen is taking on James Wade and Stephen Bunting is facing Jonny Clayton. Gerwyn Price will face the winner of Michael van Gerwen's clash with Josh Rock.
Winnipeg Free Press
27-06-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Canada's women's team advances to quarterfinals of FIBA 3×3 World Cup
ULAANBAATAR – Cassandra Brown had a game-high eight points and added five rebounds as Canada's women's team advanced to the quarterfinals of the FIBA 3×3 World Cup with an 18-6 win over Japan in a play-in game Friday. Canada rebounded after losing its final two group stage games Wednesday at the 3×3 basketball event. The Canadians will face Spain in the quarterfinals Saturday. Paige Crozon pulled down 12 rebounds and added three points for Canada. Saicha Grant-Allen had seven points and six rebounds while Kacie Bosch had four rebounds. Fuyuko Takahashi and Kiho Miyashita each had a team-high two points for Japan. 'We went in with a really focused and confident mindset,' said Crozon. 'As a team, we've grown so much over the past few days in the Women's Series and round robin games. We trusted the work we've put in together and believed in each other.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 27, 2025.
